A Library in New Jersey has begun to offer Kindle’s to loan out. How cool is that?

The new Kindle ebook reader from Amazon.com is certainly not oriented for the library borrowing model, given that books purchased are limited to the device itself. But that hasn’t stopped the Sparta Public Library, NJ, in an affluent suburb 50 miles west of New York City, from buying two $399 Kindles and preparing to loan them to patrons. “[Director Carol Boutilier] is very proactive; she wants us to be on the leading edge of any technology,” explained assistant director Diane Lapsley. Unlike many libraries, Sparta doesn’t shy away from loaning devices along with content; it previously circulated iPods loaded with audiobooks as well as an earlier generation of ebook reader.

Read the full article on LibraryJournal.com… found [via]

It appears that things are not well over at AllThingsD. Walt Mossberg, who is the principal technology columnist for the Wall Street Journal, reviewed Amazon’s Kindle e-book reader last month. Now this was surprising slow out of the gate for Mossberg so what happened? First lets see what Walt had to say about this Amazon Kindle first.

Mossberg in his review called the Kindle “mediocre” and “marred by annoying flaws” he even goes as far as saying “It is bigger and clunkier to use than the Sony Reader, whose second version has just come out at $300″. In his video review he also says there are too many flaws to list. You can watch the video of Walt Mossberg’s review of the Amazon Kindle at the end of this post. However he does also say in his review that Amazon hit the nail on the head with the shopping experience, which is hardly surprising seeing as Amazon.com is the largest bookstore in the world. All in all its seems that Mossberg is impressed with the idea and the online shopping expirience Amazon have created, but is not impressed by the device itself saying it is too big and clunky.

However, recently news came out from another tech columnist that Mossberg “was only interested in reviewing it if he could be first. When Steven Levy got it first Walt threw a tantrum.”. Wow, Steven Levy is a Newsweek tech reviewer who reviewed the Kindle a whole week before Walt. Steven Levy and David Pogue of the New York Times (Who was also amongst the first to review the iPhone) both got exclusive reviews, they also happened to gave the Kindle glowing reviews.

If that doesn’t make you wonder where his mind was at the time of the review, Mossberg also gives three iPod shout-outs in the first two paragraphs, too bad it wants a review for the iPod. C’mon Walt, we know you are getting old, but try to focus on the job in hand!

As promised, here is the video review;

The Kindle team over at Amazon.com’s Kindle discussion forums have posted this FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) up on the message boards. They answer a lot of questions if your interested in purchasing a Kindle, or if your interested in learning about the Kindle and how it works.

In an effort to make finding information about Kindle as easy as possible, the Kindle team has created this forum for you to post Kindle-related questions. Due to the volume of responses, we will not be able to reply to each individual one, but every effort will be made to address the most commonly asked questions and get you answers. Our goal is to satisfy your curiosity, make you an informed consumer, optimize your experience as a Kindle user, and learn how we can make that experience even better.

If you need a more immediate response, please email customer service at [email protected] or use the “Contact Us” feature to speak directly to a Kindle representative located here: http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/di

splay.html?nodeId=200212360.

We would like to start by pointing you to our Kindle Support page, where you can find frequently asked questions (FAQs) and guides on using Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/kindlesupport

Here are some answers to a few common questions we’ve found across the forums.

Q: Is it possible to copy text from kindle to paste in other documents?
A: Yes. All of the bookmarks, highlights, notes, and clippings you have made while reading content on Kindle are saved in a “My Clippings” file which you can find in your Home screen. The contents of the “My Clippings” file are available to read later or to copy to your computer if you want to further edit or send them to someone else. The “My Clippings” file is stored as a TXT file so you can easily import it into one of your computer applications using the provided USB cable or an SD card. For more information on clipping text, visit our help pages: http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=200127490&#clipping

Q: When can we read PDFs, please?
A: PDF document conversion is experimental. The experimental category represents the features we are working on to enhance the Kindle experience even further. Due to PDF’s fixed layout format, some complex PDF files might not format correctly on your Kindle. Each Kindle has a unique e-mail address, allowing you and your contacts to send PDF attachments for conversion into a Kindle compatible format. For more information on personal document conversion, visit our help pages: http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=200140600

Q: Can I buy a Kindle book, and, instead of delivering to my Kindle reader, push to my friend’s Kindle reader as a gift?
Q: How can I read books that I legally own on my different kindles? Can I? Should I be able to?
A: At this time, you cannot share or give your Kindle books to Kindles that are not associated with your Amazon.com account. If you are the owner of multiple Kindles, or have multiple Kindles registered to your account (i.e wife, husband), your books can be re-downloaded to each of these Kindles, up to a limit of 6 Kindles. Subscriptions to periodicals can only be downloaded to one registered Kindle.

Q: When is the Kindle going to be available elsewhere in the world? If I buy one in the US, can I use it when traveling abroad?
A: Currently, Kindle is only available in the US. Whispernet wireless delivery is also only available in the US (see a coverage map here: http://www.showmycoverage.com/mycoverage.jsp?id=A921ZON). But Kindle can also be used without activating the wireless feature while you are traveling outside the US or wireless service area. All content you purchase from the Kindle Store is saved to Your Media Library on Amazon.com. This allows you to download your books, newspapers and magazines to your computer and transfer items via Kindle’s USB connection. For more information about moving content to and from your Kindle, visit our help pages: http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=200127510&#manager

Q: with 91,000+ volumes to choose from how come only 1 book by John Grisham? Are some top authors not giving rights for kindle to market them?
A: We are constantly working with both publishers and authors to improve our selection of titles available in the Kindle store, and it is possible that we can use your feedback to help expand the available selection. I encourage you to check the Amazon Kindle store again at a later date to see if the item is available: www.amazon.com/kindlestore

Q: I know Kindle allows you to adjust [text] to an extent, but I from the illustrations I can’t determine how it would really appear. Any information on this?
A: Kindle offers six different font sizes which correspond approximately to the following Microsoft Word standard font sizes:
1 = 7pt
2 = 9pt
3 = 11 pt
4 = 14 pt
5 = 17 pt
6 = 20 pt

Q: What’s the USB cable for? I’m wondering if you can’t just hook it up to your computer and drag files…?
A: If you are traveling outside of a wireless area, you can use the USB cord to copy files from your computer to read on Kindle. All content you purchase from the Kindle Store is saved to Your Media Library on Amazon.com. This allows you to download your books, newspapers and magazines to your computer and transfer items via Kindle’s USB connection. You can also use the USB connection with your computer to transfer personal files. Your Kindle can natively read the following file types: documents in text (.txt), and Amazon Kindle (.azw), and unprotected Mobipocket books (.prc, .mobi), Audible Audio books (.aa), MP3 Music files (.mp3).

Lastly, you can e-mail attachments to be converted and then e-mailed back to your computer, which you can then transfer to your Kindle. The following file formats can be converted via e-mail and viewed on your Kindle: unprotected Microsoft Word (.DOC), Structured HTML (.HTML, .HTM), JPEG (.JPEG, .JPG), GIF (.GIF), PNG (.PNG), BMP (.BMP). Conversion of PDF files (.PDF) is experimental. For more information on using Kindle with your computer, please visit our help pages: http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=200137060

Q: How do I read in the dark after my partner has gone to bed?
A: eInk does not use a backlight, which allows us to give Kindle the appearance and readability of printed paper, even in bright sunlight. Customers who want to read at night can use any form of bedside lamp or purchase the Kindle’s reading light accessory here: http://www.amazon.com/Mighty-Bright-XtraFlex2-Light-Black/dp/B000TXZIDM

Q: What if you already have a subscription to paper magazines such as Time or Newsweek? If I wanted to read it on the Kindle, would I also have to pay additional to read it on Kindle?
A: Kindle Editions of periodicals are formatted and optimized to read on Kindle. At this time, Kindle Edition subscriptions are sold separately from the publications’ related online and/or physical versions.
You can view and order the Kindle Edition of the New York Times directly from the Kindle Store or from our online store here: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/ref=kinw_ddp/B000GFK7L6

Q: How many times are you allowed to download a particular book to your kindle? For instance if I run out of room (in the off chance this happens), I delete a book to make room for another book, and later on decide I want to read that book again, how many times can I go back to the website and get that book back onto the Kindle?
A: All of your Kindle books are automatically stored on Amazon.com in Your Media Library. So, you can remove books from Kindle’s internal memory (for example, to free up space and/or organize your Home screen) and re-download them again – as many times as you want. You can do all this directly from your Kindle using Content Manager. For more information on moving and removing content, visit our help pages: http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=200127510&#manager

Suggestion from a customer (Thank you!):
A number of people have complained that it’s impossible to close the flap of the Kindle’s cover without pressing one of the navigation buttons. I’ve found an easy solution for this: I simply put my Kindle to sleep before closing the cover. To do this, simply press Alt+AA as though you were waking it from sleep. (I wonder how many other undocumented features we’re going to discover!)

Q: Will the kiindle be able to play audio books or is this in the works for future?
A: With Kindle, you are able to download and enjoy thousands of audiobooks from Audible.com. Due to their file size, audiobooks are downloaded to your PC over your existing Internet connection and then transferred to Kindle using the included USB 2.0 cable. Listen via Kindle’s speaker or plug in your headphones for private listening.

Q: Can I read kindle books on my laptop?
A: Kindle books, newspapers, magazines and blogs are formatted to be optimized for reading on the Kindle. You will not be able to read these Kindle (.azw) files on your PC.

Q: Where can I search for and find books for my Kindle on Amazon?
A: We built a Kindle Store both on the Kindle device and on the website at www.amazon.com/kindlestore. For those Kindle buyers waiting for your shipment, you can get started building your library by purchasing content from the Kindle Store on the website (much like you’d find and buy a physical book on Amazon). Your Kindle content will be ready to read right out of the box.

Q: What is the Kindle’s return policy?
A: You can return Kindle for a full refund within 30 days. Click here to get more info on our return policy: http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?ie=UTF8&nodeId=200144510

Q: What do I need to know about purchasing Kindle as a gift for someone else?
A: You can designate a gift purchase when you are going through the checkout process on Amazon. Designating your Kindle purchase as a gift ensures that the device is not automatically registered to your Amazon.com account, which means that purchases from the Kindle Store made by the gift recipient will not be charged to you, and prices for the Kindle purchase will not appear on the packing slip. When the gift recipient opens Kindle and turns it on for the first time, he or she will need to register Kindle to an active Amazon.com account.

Q: What are wireless features and corresponding charges? So, are there any other charges beyond what I pay for books, newspapers, magazines and blogs?
A: Here’s a breakdown:
- Shopping and downloading from the Kindle Store: FREE
- Wireless delivery via e-mail of personal documents to Kindle: ($.10 per attached document).
- Experimental Basic Web: This feature is currently FREE while under development.
- Experimental NowNow: This feature is currently FREE while under development.

Q: What’s NowNow?
A: (from a customer review) You pose a question and hit submit. Within a few minutes, you get several responses – for free sent to your Kindle. This was extremely helpful when I was away from a computer and just needed a quick answer. This was actually easier than googling because I got three very good answers for every question that I asked.

Q: I’m not clear on what file formats the Kindle supports and where charges apply for conversion . .?
A: (from Computerworld)The Kindle can read only four text-document file formats: .AZW (Kindle-specific), .TXT, .MOBI and .PRC. In addition, every Kindle gets its own e-mail address for receiving Amazon-converted Word, HTML, TXT, JPEG, GIF, PNG, and BMP files for 10 cents per document. You send the original to your Kindle’s address and your device receives the converted document (only e-mail addresses you authorize can send to your Kindle).

Source: Amazon.com Kindle Discussion Forums

Each week we bring to you the New York Times best sellers list. We go through the list and give you our top 3 picks so to give you an an idea of what to download for your Kindle or just to buy for your bookshelf.

Hardcover Fiction
Top 5 at a Glance
1. T IS FOR TRESPASS, by Sue Grafton
2. THE DARKEST EVENING OF THE YEAR, by Dean Koontz
3. FOR ONE MORE DAY, by Mitch Albom
4. DOUBLE CROSS, by James Patterson
5. A THOUSAND SPLENDID SUNS, by Khaled Hosseini

Hardcover Nonfiction
Top 5 at a Glance
1. I AM AMERICA (AND SO CAN YOU!), by Stephen Colbert, Richard Dahm, Paul Dinello, Allison Silverman et al.
2. BOOM!, by Tom Brokaw
3. BORN STANDING UP, by Steve Martin
4. AN INCONVENIENT BOOK, by Glenn Beck and Kevin Balfe
5. CLAPTON, by Eric Clapton

Hardcover Advice
Top 5 at a Glance
1. THE DANGEROUS BOOK FOR BOYS, by Conn Iggulden and Hal Iggulden
2. THE DARING BOOK FOR GIRLS, by Andrea J. Buchanan and Miriam Peskowitz
3. YOU: STAYING YOUNG, by Michael F. Roizen and Mehmet C. Oz et al.
4. DECEPTIVELY DELICIOUS, by Jessica Seinfeld
5. JIM CRAMER’S STAY MAD FOR LIFE, by James J. Cramer with Cliff Mason

Children’ Books
Top 5 at a Glance
1. STAR WARS POP-UP GUIDE TO THE GALAXY, by Matthew Reinhart
2. THE THREE SNOW BEARS, written and illustrated by Jan Brett
3. ON THE NIGHT YOU WERE BORN, written and illustrated by Nancy Tillman
4. HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL: ALL ACCESS, by N. B. Grace
5. THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS, by Clement C. Moore

Paperback Trade Fiction
Top 5 at a Glance
1. THE PILLARS OF THE EARTH, by Ken Follett
2. LOVE IN THE TIME OF CHOLERA, by Gabriel García Márquez
3. WATER FOR ELEPHANTS, by Sara Gruen
4. THE KITE RUNNER, by Khaled Hosseini
5. ATONEMENT, by Ian McEwan

Paperback Mass-Market Fiction
Top 5 at a Glance
1. BLOOD BROTHERS, by Nora Roberts
2. I AM LEGEND, by Richard Matheson
3. NEXT, by Michael Crichton
4. FURY, by Aaron Allston
5. CROSS, by James Patterson

Paperback Nonfiction
Top 5 at a Glance
1. EAT, PRAY, LOVE, by Elizabeth Gilbert
2. THE INNOCENT MAN, by John Grisham
3. THREE CUPS OF TEA, by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin
4. INTO THE WILD, by Jon Krakauer
5. 90 MINUTES IN HEAVEN, by Don Piper with Cecil Murphey

Paperback Advice
Top 5 at a Glance
1. RACHAEL RAY: JUST IN TIME, by Rachael Ray
2. SKINNY BITCH, by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin
3. THE WORLD ALMANAC AND BOOK OF FACTS 2008, edited by C. Alan Joyce
4. 1,000 PLACES TO SEE BEFORE YOU DIE, by Patricia Schultz
5. 1,000 PLACES TO SEE IN THE U.S.A. AND CANADA BEFORE YOU DIE, by Patricia Schultz

Our Picks

The Darkest Evening of the Year: Number 2 on Hardback Fiction

Amy Redwing operates Golden Heart, a Golden Retriever rescue service, that brings her to the home of abused housewife and mother Janet Brockman. Amy and her close friend Brian McCarthy rescue Janet, her two kids, and their retriever Nicki from Janet’s abusive husband. Immediately, Amy recognizes a seemingly supernatural connection with Nicki, the golden retriever.

And soon thereafter, Amy discovers that she is being followed.

The power of this novel lies in the genuine compassion that Dean Koontz exhibits through Amy and her love for and near obsession to rescue both people and dogs from abuse and neglect.

If there’s a weakness to this novel it’s that Amy can come across as unintentionally self-righteous and holier than thou.

Regardless, it’s clear that Dean Koontz is a mature writer, and his desire to bring together the suspense-writing strengths of his early career with matters close to his heart are on full display in The Darkest Evening of the Year.

This novel contains a couple of plot twists that are really, really cool, and the textured layers of the characters, their multiple names and the depths of their backgrounds indicate that Koontz is onto something profound in this novel…. namely the existence of a soul and how that soul transmits through multiple lives.

This is a profound novel from a writer who has mastered the elements of suspense, and I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Source: Amazon Customer Review

I Am Legend: Number 2 on Paperback Mass-Market Fiction

I am Legend is arguably the greatest short horror novel ever written, and its influence on the horror genre has been profound. Stephen King and many other of today’s masters rank this book highly in their personal top ten lists of favorites. It is a short novel that can be read in one sitting; it is hard to put down, building in intensity from start to finish. Matheson creates an entirely new type of vampire fiction herein. Transcending the traditional vampire tale, he adds science fiction elements to produce a refreshing new interpretation of Stoker’s legend. The most fascinating part of the story is the protagonist’s (Richard Neville’s) attempts to explain the legendary aspects of the vampire myth in scientific terms. His discovery of a bacterium, which he dubs vampiris, as the true source of vampirism struck me anew reading the novel again after the events of September 11, 2001. Although we only get pieces of the story regarding the outbreak of the vampiric plague, including a reference to bombings, it can easily be seen as the fruits of germ warfare. Neville even conjectures that the Black Death of the Middle Ages was caused by this same vampiris germ, and he extrapolates facts and ideas from that history in his attempts to understand why such defenses as garlic, crosses, and stakes driven into the heart actually are effective against the hordes of undead creatures menacing his own time. He studies academic texts and conducts experiments with the blood of these creatures, which is the means by which he identifies the bacterium. The essence of garlic has no effect on the germ when injected into a blood sample, which initially he is unable to explain, but he later is able to explain garlic’s effectiveness. Less scientific tests lead him to conclude that crosses are only effective against “Christian” vampires; the cross has no meaning to for vampires who were once Jews and Moslems, but sacred symbols of those religions, such as the Torah and the Koran, do. All of these scientific tests and speculations are just fascinating.

Neville is essentially the last man on earth, and the loneliness of his situation is the central part of the story. Matheson is able to communicate Neville’s emotional feelings vividly, making him very real. We gradually acquire the story of the deaths of Neville’s wife and daughter, essentially experiencing the pain he goes through when these memories overcome him. We watch him drink himself into a stupor as each night finds him besieged in his fortified house, surrounded by vampires, including his old friend and neighbor, calling for him to come out. We watch him slowly lose his grip on sanity and come very close to giving up. Then, however, we watch him overcome his depression and courageously fight to live in the nightmare world he is trapped in. The scenes with the dog he finds are full of emotion and really gripped this reader. This is Neville’s first contact with nonvampiric life, and his attempts to befriend and help the poor creature (at the same time finally finding a companion) touched me greatly and brought tears to my eyes. His eventual discovery of another human being like himself is also powerful and emotional, although to speak more about this aspect of the story is to risk giving something away to the future reader.

This is a story of one man overcoming all obstacles and fighting to defend his way of life and his very humanity. The novel deals with the human condition, the essential ingredient to effective horror writing. Neville struggles constantly with his doubts and fears, particularly as he commits acts that he would have condemned as barbarous in the time before the plague. His needs for companionship of any kind offer us a clear image of the inner soul of man. By the end of the story, he does indeed become legend, both in his world and in ours.

Source: Amazon Customer Review

The Dangerous Book for Boys: Number 1 on Hardcover Advice

I have to write, primarily to disagree with Mr Mitchell.

This may not be the greatest book ever, but it fills a huge hole, and I for one look forward to Volume II.

I and a friend, when we were about 10, made a go-kart just like that described, and the paper aeroplane detailed in this book comfortably beats my previous “favourite design”, (gleaned from a Rupert Annual many years ago). You learn something every day.

It’s a great book and while learning bits of Shakespeare won’t be to everyone’s taste, there will be something – many things in fact – that WILL be to everyone’s taste. I bought my copy on impulse in a book shop for £18.99, I’m here buying another for the 50+ year-old friend with whom I built the go-kart all those years ago! :-)

If you have kids, or grandchildren, or godchildren (or simply remember being one yourself) buy it!

Source: Amazon Customer Review